$92,000,000 Toronto Maple Leafs star gives his thoughts on Max Domi's electric performance in 3-2 loss to Panthers

William Nylander praised Max Domi’s effort in the Toronto Maple Leafs' 3-2 loss to the Florida Panthers on Thursday. Domi fought against the Panthers' Nate Schmidt in the first period at 03:54 and received 5 penalty minutes. Despite that, Domi continued his play and scored a third-period goal with a wrist shot at 04:26 to cut the Panthers' lead to 3-2.

Nylander praised Max Domi's performance while speaking to the media after the game:

"Yeah, he came out— big hit, nice fight, huge goal. Yeah, he had a great game."

Toronto head coach Craig Berube also praised Domi:

"He (Domi) had a heck of a game, in my opinion — big hit, fight, scored a goal. He was skating and working. He was good."

Despite Domi’s strong game, special teams made the difference. The Panthers scored twice on the power play, while the Leafs did not.

"Yeah, I think special teams were a big difference. I mean, they scored on the power play, and we didn’t," Nylander said.

Nylander, who signed an eight-year, $92 million contract in January last year has extended his point streak to seven games.

Domi has struggled this season but has two goals and four assists in his last nine games. He remains on the third line, though his game suits a top-six role. The loss increased Florida’s lead over Toronto for first in the Atlantic Division to four points. The teams will meet twice more this season.

Max Domi shows respect toward Nate Schmidt

Max Domi's physical play was a key moment in the Toronto Maple Leafs' loss to the Panthers. Early in the game, Domi delivered a hard hit on Carter Verhaeghe, knocking him off balance. Following which Panthers defenseman Nate Schmidt quickly challenged him.

It led to a fight at center ice, where Domi landed several punches before the officials stepped in.

“Nothing was really said, but I figured it's a big hit on one of their big players, so I wasn't sure it would end up coming, but I just kind of reacted,” Domi said, (via The Hockey News). “I think it was a big hit. ...

"It's part of the game. I think I might have caught him a little bit on the way down. Obviously, I don't like doing that, but it definitely wasn't my intention."

Domi also praised Schmidt for stepping in:

"I got a lot of respect for him. ... Schmitty hung in there, and it's a part of the game.”

Max Domi has scored 26 points in 57 games this season.